This application is related to Japanese Patent Applications Nos. 2001-270543 (filed in Sep. 6, 2001), 2001-272483 (filed in Sep. 7, 2001), 2001-272484 (filed in Sep. 7, 2001), 2001-272485 (filed in Sep. 7, 2001), 2001-272486 (filed in Sep. 7, 2001), 2001-272487 (filed in Sep. 7, 2001), 2001-275375 (filed in Sep. 11, 2001), 2001-275385 (filed in Sep. 11, 2001), 2001-275397 (filed in Sep. 11, 2001), 2001-355093 (filed in Nov. 20, 2001), 2001-362979 (filed in Nov. 28, 2001), 2002-108113 (filed in Apr. 10, 2002) and 2002-126640 (filed in Apr. 26, 2002), whose priorities are claimed under 35 USC xc2xa7119, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference in their entirety.
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a sample analyzer and its components and, particularly, to a highly versatile and small-scale sample analyzer for analyzing a blood sample, a urine sample and the like.
2. Description of the Related Art
Art hitherto known in relation to this invention is as follows.
A small-scale automatic analyzer comprising a reaction vessel disk having a reaction table with its circumferential portion equidistantly divided into a plurality of portions, a plurality of reaction vessels held by the reaction vessel disk, means for transporting the respective reaction vessels to a sample dispenser, to an agent dispensing position and to an optically measuring position, means for sucking and dispensing a required amount of a sample into the reaction vessel, and means for optically analyzing the sample in the reaction vessel (see, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 11-94842 (1999));
A liquid suction device adapted to move a pipette with respect to an open sample vessel by utilizing the torque of a first motor and move the pipette with respect to a closed sample vessel by utilizing the torque of a second motor (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,171,280);
An assembly comprising a longitudinally compressible and extendible hollow cleaning chamber, a pipette which is adapted to be accommodated in the cleaning chamber when the cleaning chamber is expanded and to project from the cleaning chamber when the cleaning chamber is compressed, and a lock device for locking the cleaning chamber in an expanded state (see International Publication No. 92/22798);
A pipette comprising a hollow pipe having an end sealed with a seal member, and a suction port provided in a side wall of the pipe adjacent in the vicinity of the end (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,969,272);
A pipette comprising a thin suction pipe for sucking a liquid sample, and a thin vent pipe for ventilation during the suction, the suction pipe and the vent pipe being disposed in side-by-side relation (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,969,272);
A pipette cleaning device comprising a pipette generally vertically disposed with a liquid sample intake port thereof being oriented downward, a pipette exterior cleaning member having a generally vertical through-path in which the pipette is loosely fitted, a feed path for feeding a cleaning liquid into the through-path, and a drain path for draining a waste cleaning liquid from the through-path, pipette interior cleaning means connected to the pipette for feeding the cleaning liquid into the interior of the pipette, a cleaning liquid reservoir chamber connected to the feed path of the cleaning member and the pipette interior cleaning means, suction means connected to the drain path of the cleaning member for sucking the waste cleaning liquid from the pipette, a waste liquid reservoir chamber connected to the drain path for storing the waste cleaning liquid sucked out by the suction means, and driving means for moving up and down at least one of the cleaning member and the pipette to change a positional relationship between the cleaning member and the pipette, wherein the through-path has a smaller diameter portion spaced a smaller distance from the pipette and a greater diameter portion provided below the smaller diameter portion and spaced a greater distance from the pipette than the smaller diameter portion, wherein the feed path and the drain path communicate with the greater diameter portion and the smaller diameter portion, respectively (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,959); and
A pipette cleaning device comprising a through-path in which a pipette having a suction port provided at a tip end thereof is inserted, a feed path for supplying a cleaning liquid into the through-path, and a drain path for draining a waste cleaning liquid from the through-path (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,959).
There have been proposed various types of automatic sample analyzers such as automatic blood analyzers. Most of the recent automatic analyzers have a greater size and a higher operation speed to handle a multiplicity of samples in a short time. In addition, the operation of the automatic analyzers is complicated, so that special operators should be employed as regular staff. Local hospitals and private clinics which do not frequently need clinical analyses currently commission a special analysis center to perform the clinical analyses. However, it is impossible to immediately obtain the results of clinical analyses in an emergency case. Therefore, there is a demand for a highly versatile, easy-to-operate and small-scale automatic sample analyzer.
In view of the foregoing, it is an object of the present invention to simplify the operation of an automatic sample analyzer for easy handling of the analyzer by doctors and nurses, reduce the size and weight of the analyzer for easy transportation of the analyzer to diagnostic and medical treatment sites, suppress the noises of the analyzer for a quiet environment, and ensure safe and easy maintenance and inspection of the analyzer, and energy saving of the analyzer.
In accordance with the present invention, there is provided an automatic sample analyzer, which comprises: a pipette; a pipette driving device which moves the pipette to a sample vessel present in a predetermined position to cause the pipette to suck up a sample from the sample vessel, and then moves the pipette to an open vessel provided in another predetermined position to cause the pipette to discharge the sample into the open vessel; and an analyzing section for analyzing the discharged sample; the pipette driving device comprising a vertically movable main arm and an elongated guide arm cantilevered by the main arm and extending horizontally; the guide arm having a smaller flexural rigidity than the main arm; wherein the main arm vertically moves the pipette when the sample is to be sucked up from the sample vessel, and the guide arm guides the pipette to the open vessel and then vertically moves the pipette when the sample is to be discharged into the open vessel.